Just curious how normal it is to have a lab pup "stalk" something that is thrown for it. I can't say that I have ever seen it before, but I've only owned two labs. About half the time I throw something for my 9 week old pup, he will slowly stalk it, or sometimes even stop with his tail straight out like he is on a point. Then he will pounce on the item. His concentration while doing this is quite impressive, as is his "point" with his tail perfectly straight. The other half of the time he will charge right after what I throw. Any thoughts about this?
Lab pup "stalking" objects thrown
Meleagris1
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Just curious how normal it is to have a lab pup "stalk" something that is thrown for it. I can't say that I have ever seen it before, but I've only owned two labs. About half the time I throw something for my 9 week old pup, he will slowly stalk it, or sometimes even stop with his tail straight out like he is on a point. Then he will pounce on the item. His concentration while doing this is quite impressive, as is his "point" with his tail perfectly straight. The other half of the time he will charge right after what I throw. Any thoughts about this?
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I have a 16 week old ylf who did the same thing. As she got older and more excited about retrieving she stopped.
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Just being a puppy is my guess
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I'm guessing this will be the case with my pup also, but this was the first time I had seen this before so I thought I would ask. He is all puppy that's for sure!
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Maybe (if you like the idea of a Lab that Points) you should get the book, "Training the Pointing Labrador", by Julie Knutson.
It's only available from the Knutson website at http://gunclub-labs.com/
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It's only available from the Knutson website at http://gunclub-labs.com/
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Not to worry. The goods ones will outgrow it
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Thanks Doc. If this is the case with my pup, does this generally cause any problems that I should be aware of specific to FT or HT training.
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No problems. Me and my dog will be running finished this year. He knows when to point and when to get fetch. It does keep me from running HRC upland and the Grand(if I ever wanted to) because the rules state that the dog has to flush.
My dog's littermate points and has way more titles than JD. If the owner wants to chime in he can.
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My BLM who is now 9 months old started that way and now is a retrieving machine
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Just a follow up on this thread - my pup is now 3 years old. Took him out for pheasants yesterday and shot 9 - he locked up or pointed on every single one. I guess he's in the 7-10%. It was a fun hunt!
Don't panic, but you have a lab that would point when hunting upland game. I have had three generations of them. All of them frequently pointed when pheasant hunting. That being said, each of them was run in FT's and HT's. Nobody in those activities ever suspected that any of them would point, as they never displayed that trait in those activities. All of my training has been done by me. The first dog never titled in FT's but ended up with two open seconds and two amateur seconds as well as other placements. She went 6 for 6 in AKC master hunt tests. Her daughter won three Q's and went 3 for 3 in AKC MH before I discovered a huge hearing loss at age three, and was unable to do water blinds in all-age field trials, where handling in noisy situations was impossible. The third placed from 4th to 2nd in the 5 Q's which she ran (one was only RJ). My 9 year old grand daughter ran her in her first hunt test, a senior, and passé with flying colors. Personally I will be looking for another dog like yours within the next year. I really enjoy the pointing and NEVER saw it appear while duck hunting or when competing.
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My only advice is that if you want to develop his "possible" pointing instincts and will be posting regularly on RTF (or any other retriever training forum) is to develop a "thick skin".
![Image]()
Pointing Labs (link)
Pointing Labs (link)
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Meleagris1. Where did you hunt the pheasant. I am also from the Hudson River Valley area and I was out on Saturday at TMT with my 18 month old BLF. She does not point but is turning into a hunting machine. Have hunted with 2 different pointing labs. Quite a different experience. Sounds like yours turned out well. Good luck
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